The Trump administration often speaks of protecting Christians from discrimination worldwide. But that concern seems to vanish when Israel is involved — even with a Baptist pastor serving as the U.S. ambassador to Israel.
Daoud Kuttab
Reverend Hanna Massad, who was born in Gaza and has been an American citizen since 2003, served for 12 years as the pastor of Gaza Baptist Church. Yet, on May 8 when Pastor Massad attempted to travel to the Holy Land to attend a church conference at Bethlehem Bible College, he was denied entry by Israeli authorities. Massad had taken a precautionary step of applying for and receiving written approval with an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) application. ETA is a digital travel permit that allows foreign visitors to register electronically without needing a traditional visa, and it is applicable to American citizens crossing Israeli border points.
In 2019, President Trump hosted a Global Call to Protect Religious Freedom event at the United Nations and called on the international community and business leaders to work to protect religious freedom around the world. In his second term, Trump established a faith office at the White House and set up a task force to fight anti-Christian bias. These actions raised expectations that American Christians, regardless of ethnicity or origin, would be protected when facing discrimination abroad.
For years, Israel has faced criticism for discriminating against Arab and African American U.S. citizens at border crossings. Many hoped such practices had ceased following Israel’s agreement to grant reciprocal visa privileges to Americans, a move meant to secure Israel’s inclusion in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program. At the time, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas emphasized that this arrangement would ensure “freedom of movement for U.S. citizens, including those living in the Palestinian Territories or traveling to and from them.”
That promise failed Pastor Massad. At the border, Israeli officials informed him he would not be allowed entry due to his Gaza origins. “I was told that Israel has excluded Americans of Gazan origin from their commitment after the events of October 7,” Massad said. While those events were the work of Hamas, a Palestinian Islamist group, Christians like Massad who have no ties to Hamas are being penalized under the same sweeping policy.
Pastor Hanna Massad preaching “Growing Through Forgiveness” at PaulAnn Baptist Church in San Angelo, TX. (screengrab)
The discrimination wasn’t isolated. Three weeks later, on May 26, Dr. Fares Abraham, CEO of the Florida-based Levant Ministries and other ministries in the Middle East, was also singled out. While leading a delegation of Christian leaders from Alabama, he experienced similar discrimination. He was separated at an Israeli checkpoint because he was born in Bethlehem. “I was told that unlike the rest of the Americans traveling in our delegation, I couldn’t use the Zaim checkpoint and had to cross the Qalandia checkpoint that is created specifically for Palestinians instead,” he recounted. The American delegation refused to leave him behind, joining him on a detour that delayed their trip.
Whether these cases reach the attention of U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, himself a former Baptist pastor, remains unclear. It’s also uncertain whether the U.S. State Department’s newly formed unit tasked with monitoring global Christian persecution will dare name Israel — a close U.S. ally — as a perpetrator of religious bias.
Discrimination and violence against Christians in Israel and the occupied territories are well-documented. In 2024 alone, there were 111 reported incidents, including assaults on clergy and vandalism of churches. The Rossing Center highlighted a disturbing rise in hate crimes against Christians, particularly in Jerusalem.
Gaza’s Christian community, already small, has been devastated by Israeli airstrikes. On Good Friday, 58 Palestinians were killed in one day. Among the targets: the al-Ahli Arab Hospital (formerly the Baptist Hospital), the last fully functioning hospital in Gaza City. An Israeli missile destroyed its intensive care and surgery units. Videos from the scene showed flames engulfing the building as patients, some still in their beds, fled in panic. The Israeli military acknowledged the strike but alleged, without presenting evidence, that the hospital was used by Hamas as a command center. One child died while being evacuated.
Palestinian officials have accused Israel of targeting Christian communities. Palestinian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Varsen Aghabekian Shahin stated that 3% of Gaza’s Christian population has been killed since the start of the war in October 2023. She made the announcement during a meeting in Ramallah with representatives from Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP). “Three churches have been destroyed,” Shahin added, urging global intervention to halt Israel’s aggression in Gaza and the West Bank.
Reverend Massad has filed a complaint with the U.S. government over the discrimination he faced. But he holds little hope that the U.S. government will take his complaint seriously and provide help in this situation for him and for others.
Daoud Kuttab, a Palestinian Christian from Jerusalem, is an award-winning journalist and publisher of Milhilard.org, a news website dedicated to the social and community needs of Christians in Jordan and Palestine. He is also the author of State of Palestine NOW.
